And no, this isn’t JohnChow.com, which makes about $30,000 a month – this is a site making a play off the name (and possibly getting traffic from the misspelling).
Nonetheless, I’ve been watching the site for some time – and watched the $3,000 in prizes rise to $27,000 currently.
So it works – and the question is, can YOU use a similar system to succeed?
Frankly, contests are good way to get attention.
And as the attention comes in, people offer products to get noticed. In the end, it becomes self-perpetuating – after all, you MIGHT subscribe for $3,000 – but how could you NOT subscribe when the prizes are closer to 10x that amount?
However, it can get tricky:
- Google takes a dim view of anyone ‘buying’ links – it remains to be seen how they feel about people posting for a ‘chance’ only, but it’s a risky way to get a significant portion of your site’s links.
- If you start the contest, and no one joins, you still have to pay out – so plan accordingly.
- The ‘sweet smell of success’ comes when the ball starts gathering speed – which means if the prizes don’t increase, the site may not gain momentum, and the contest won’t do as much for you.
- Prizes of course must match the audience. I was at a music site where the prizes was a guitar – but if they had instead offered makeup, they may have had fewer people go ahead (although I’m sure many would still have subscribed).
- Lookieloos are a problem. Frankly, if people subscribe just for a contest, how soon after it ends do they unsubscribe? The end result may be a short burst of subscribers, then a mass exodus.
- Contests need rules. In this litigious society, running a contest incorrectly can make someone mad – and cost you if they have a lawyer on tap. So making sure the contest runs legally means a little extra effort, and cost.
I’ll keep watching this to see how it fares – but remember that your ‘chance’ is one of many, and so visit (and sign up) because you enjoy the information primarily – not for a guaranteed ‘win’.
